Local news reports indicate high turnout in some states

Early reports indicate that voters are turning out in high numbers in some red states and urban areas today. The reports are anecdotal, however, and full turnout numbers won't be available until after the polls close.

Nate Silver, polling analyst for the New York Times, made fun of the initial turnout reports on Twitter, saying they're "anecdotal and completely speculative gossip." But the unreliability of impressionistic accounts doesn't stop candidates from arguing and worrying over what they might portend. In Pennsylvania, Republican Senate candidate Pat Toomey is disputing claims of high voter turnout in Philadelphia, since that could be to the advantage of his opponent, Democratic Rep. Joe Sestak. Meanwhile, Democratic Senate candidate Chris Coons in Delaware is warning supporters that reports of low turnout could be bad news for his campaign against insurgent tea party nominee Christine O'Donnell.

And since for the rest of the country, imprecise accounts of turnout are all we have, our roundup of local reports on turnout around the country appears below:

Minnesota
According to the Associated Press, Minnesota Secretary of State Mark Ritchie says, based on what he's seeing at the polls, turnout may surpass 60 percent of registered voters:

Ritchie says Election Day is going "smooth as silk" with higher-than-expected voter turnout Tuesday morning.

Ritchie had predicted a turnout of 60 percent but a surge of early morning voters and good weather throughout the state had him questioning at midmorning whether that was too low.

Iowa
Turnout in the state's most most populous county is apparently exceeding that reported for the 2006 midterms, according to Radio Iowa:

"Usually, we're about 55 percent turn-out for our total in Polk County. We're expecting it to be 60 to 65. In presidential (election years), we see about 70 to 75 (percent)," [Polk County Auditor Jamie] Fitzgerald says. "We've seen brisk turn-out this morning and we expect that to continue throughout the day."

Pennsylvania
In Pennsylvania's Lehigh Valley, observers report very high turnout in the eastern state district. GOP Rep. Charlie Dent is facing Democratic challenger John Callahan for the 15th congressional district seat there. Another report suggests strong voter turnout in Democratic Philadelphia, perhaps giving an edge to Democratic Senate candidate Joe Sestak. Officials with Sestak's GOP Senate rival, Pat Toomey, dispute the turnout claims.

Missouri
In St. Louis, reports suggest that voters are turning out in droves. From stltoday.com:

"It's a very heavy turnout," said Rich Chrismer, director of elections in St. Charles County. He predicted a turnout of 65 to 70 percent of the county's registered voters. Meanwhile, the secretary of state's office has predicted a statewide turnout of 51.3 percent of registered voters.

Kentucky
Louisville is seeing higher-than-average turnout as voters decide whether to elect Republican Rand Paul, a tea party favorite, or Democrat Jack Conway to the Senate. From the Courier-Journal:

Nore Ghibaudy, a spokesman for the Jefferson County Clerk's Office, said polling locations were reporting seeing more voters than normal, with one precinct in Jeffersontown reporting more than 1,000 voters by 9 a.m., a number not normally reached until about 11 a.m.

Delaware
Democratic Senate candidate Chris Coons' campaign manager sent an email to supporters today warning turnout has been low in two key Delaware counties. Though Coons leads GOP candidate Christine O'Donnell in the polls, he needs to nab Democratic and Independent voters in both counties to win.

Massachusetts
In Western Massachusetts, poll workers said turnout was fairly high, with long lines reported in some precincts. In Boston, turnout has already surpassed that of the special election that GOP Sen. Scott Brown won earlier this year. But Boston suburbs are leading the city in turnout. More than 132,000 voters have requested absentee ballots.

Illinois
Turnout in mainly Democratic Chicago is expected to be around 53 percent, higher than the 50 percent expected statewide.

Wisconsin
An election commission official in Milwaukee says the turnout in the city will be higher than the 50 percent predicted for the state. From radio station WTMJ:

Deputy Election Commissioner Neil Albrecht said that poll workers have been busy. "We've had a terrific turnout of voters so far," said Albrecht to Newsradio 620 WTMJ. "Very enthusiastic about the election."

(Photo of voters lining up this morning in Minnesota: AP)